Forest Girl
by EmrysTheMerlin
Summary: Balinor escaped Uther's men with his pregnant wife. Almost 20 years later the 19 year old Merlin is a beautiful young woman raised by her parents, the druids and the spirits of magic all around. But when the great dragon escapes and begins wreaking havoc on Camelot a young man comes in search of her father's help. Arthur finds something else waiting for him in the forest. Love.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: Ok I was playing around and a thought came to me. What if Balinor took Hunith with him when he ran from Ealdor. What if they raised Merlin on the run? My brain needs to stop this madness. This is Fem Merlin. I own nothing.**

Forest Girl

Prologue

A Legend is Born

A tall man with dark hair paced back and forth in front of the healer's tent. His wife of almost a year was in there, struggling to give birth to their child. It hadn't been an easy pregnancy especially with Uther chasing them down across three kingdoms but with the help of this druid camp they had faked their deaths and escaped Uther's latest patrol. After this they could start a new life with their child, they just had to make it through the night. He prayed to every god a goddess he could think of that they would make it. A young woman in deep green druid robes stepped out of the tent and beckoned him forward.

"My lord Balinor." Balinor shook his head.

"Please no titles. How are they?" The woman smiled sadly.

"Your wife lives but we do not know if your child will make it through the night. Please come in." Balinor felt tears build in his eyes as he entered the tent. Hunith lay on a bed made of cushions tears streaming down her face as she stared down at the bundle in her arms. It was a girl, pale as death, breathing but not crying as she should have been. Her lips were blue, it looked like the healer had been correct, she wouldn't make it through the night. He lay a hand on his daughter's head. Slowly a light grew in the tent until it was almost blinding. Balinor instinctively shaded his daughter's eyes. The light faded slightly until a figure became clear. She was stunning with long flowing golden hair reaching the ground. Her eyes blazed golden with magic and everyone there knew who she was in an instant and all dropped to their knees before her. Balinor and Hunith stared as she approached them and their dying babe.

"Fear not, I mean you no harm. I am here to help." She knelt down before the small family and reached out her arms to take the child. Hunith was reluctant to hand over her baby but she relented when the goddess smiled at her. It was so reassuring she felt like everything would be alright now. The goddess took the child in her arms brushing a damp lock of raven hair away from her tiny face, she didn't even stir.

"Oh, how small you are for such a great destiny. A destiny that I know you will face little one, and when you do you must be bold and brave." The goddess leaned down and kissed the child's forehead. The blinding light returned and seconds later there was a sound that made Hunith and Balinor cry harder, this time with joy. It was the sound of a wailing child. The light dimmed and the two saw the goddess smiling down at the wailing bundle in her arms. The young girl's eyes were open and they were glowing gold, the same gold as the goddess's own eyes. The goddess knelt and carefully handed the babe back to her mother. Balinor looked up at the goddess as Hunith fed their child for the first time.

"I am eternally grateful, but why us my lady?" The goddess smiled though it was slightly sad this time.

"Your daughter was born for a purpose Balinor. She is the one the legends speak of, she is Emrys no matter what you choose to name her, and it is her destiny to bring magic back into balance in this troubled time. How she chooses to do it is up to her but that is her fate. A fate I am sure she will meet with grace and beauty. Good luck my Emrys." The goddess laid a hand on the child's raven hair one last time and then dissolved in a glimmer of golden light. The druids rose to their feet and gathered around the new family. One of the healers, the one in the dark green robe, knelt next to Hunith.

"What will you name her?" There seemed to be no doubt now that the child would survive to fulfil the goddess's predictions. Balinor looked at Hunith but before either of them could speak they heard the cry of a bird outside. Hunith smiled at Balinor who nodded and then down at their daughter.

"Merlin, her name shall be Merlin."


	2. 1 Friends

**Author's Note: So yep that's how it all began this time around. How it ends remains to be seen. Chapters in this one are gonna be short for a while. I own nothing.**

Chapter 1

Friends 

_Twenty Years Later_

Merlin sat in a tree just outside of camp giggling maniacally. They were still inside the protective barrier that Tauren and Diana always set up but that kind of barrier never kept out any of her friends, it just wasn't strong enough. Merlin clapped along to the music being played on pan pipes by a young green skinned faun. Two centaurs, one male one female pranced through the clearing in time with the music. Merlin loved these times, times when she could get away from Tauren's lessons and Diana's fussing and her parents knowing and worried looks. She knew who she was, she'd know the truth, her destiny for a while now but she wasn't quite sure what that meant. Bringing balance to magic could mean any number of things. It had meant killing Nimueh several months ago, even though she hadn't wanted to. Nimueh had been using magic to hurt people and that wouldn't stand. The goddess had asked her to kill Nimueh so she did. It wasn't often the goddess asked something of her and it had taken weeks for her to do the deed. But she had ended up saving several lives in the process and meeting a relative she hadn't even known she had. His name was Giaus and he was her uncle on her mother's side. He had stayed at the camp for a few days while he fully recovered from nearly dying but he had thanked her profusely and told her that she had saved the princes life in doing what she did. She had shrugged. She didn't really care for titles, shied away from them when the druids tried to call her their princess.

The male centaur, whose coat was black as night, circled the female whose coat was a deep chestnut brown. Merlin grinned, they were flirting and she hoped it would work out for them. Love was hard to find, she sometimes wondered if she would ever find it herself. She sighed slightly running her hands through her waist length raven colored hair. Several sections of the mass of hair were braided but no matter what she or her mother tried they could never get the whole mass f hair to cooperate. Before she could keep up her slightly depressing train of thought a green glow flew into her line of sight and she grinned wide. The glow circled the clearing once before it spotted her and flew up to the tree she was sitting in. Merlin held out her hands and the fairy landed in them looking grateful of the place to rest. She had brown skin, the color of tree bark and wore a dress made from leaves but her wings were those of a monarch butterfly. Her hair matched them, a fiery orange that faded to black at the tips.

"Mona! How are you? It's been ages!" Mona shook her head at Merlin.

"No time for that now little hawk! You must warn your people, the great dragon has finally escaped his binding and is wreaking havoc on Camelot. We don't know how far he may go to seek his vengeance." Merlin nodded and leapt out of the tree, her deep blue eyes flashing a brilliant gold as she floated down to the forest floor without injury. As soon as her feet touched ground she was off like a shot racing through the forest back to the camp, Mona clinging to her hair as the trees blurred past them. They arrived in minutes and Merlin found Tauren swiftly racing into his tent with barely a knock on one of the posts to let him know he had company. He looked up from his book and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes young Emrys?" Tauren only ever called her Merlin when her parents were around or when there were strangers in the camp which almost never happened and even then they were usually other druids who knew she was Emrys anyway.

"Sorry to interrupt Tauren. Mona just told me that the great dragon escaped and he's destroying Camelot!" The fairy waved at Tauren from where she was making a nest of flowers in Merlin's hair. This wasn't an unusual sight at all, Merlin always found some spirit, or sprite, or fairy or quite memorably a herd of unicorns, but the news she brought was far from ordinary. Tauren shot to his feet and bustled out the door, Merlin followed.

"We have to help them!" Tauren raised an eyebrow. They were camped on the edge of Mercia at the moment, quite close to the border with Camelot which was likely why Mona had brought them the warning. But despite the stories they had told her, horror stories of healers burned at the stake and innocent people hung for helping others, she still genuinely wanted to help. Tauren shook his head slightly, for one so powerful Emrys could be so trusting in the goodness of others. Tauren stuck his head into Balinor and Hunith's shared tent and spoke with Balinor briefly. Soon there was a council meeting in progress.

As always Merlin was in attendance, sitting off to the side until she was old enough to help them make decisions. What she didn't understand was why there was even a question here. People were dying because the great dragon was angry. She'd be angry too if she'd been locked up for twenty years after watching all her kin die but just because he was angry didn't mean he got to do whatever he wanted. She sighed as they bickered. Then one of the guards ran up to the meeting.

"My apologies but there are three knights of Camelot nearing the protective boundaries. They are dressed as simple folk but I recognized Prince Arthur Pendragon among them." Balinor nodded and spoke, seemingly to himself.

"Likely Uther crawling to me for help after all these years. Merlin you should stay out of… Sight." Balinor looked around for his daughter but she was nowhere to be seen. The only trace of her left behind was the footprints left by her perpetually bare feet. They were heading in the direction the guard had come from.


	3. 2 Wolf In Druids Clothing

**Author's Note: Wow this one got a lot more attention than I had figured for. Sorry updates for pretty much everything are gonna be pretty slow for a while, I sprained my wrist really bad at work so I'm now in a splint and typing with it on is really difficult but hurts without it so yeah… I own nothing.**

2 Wolf in Druids Clothing

Merlin wove through the trees, careful to avoid the guards she knew were stationed at the edges of the shield that protected the camp. This wasn't the first time she had snuck out of the camp. The first time she'd done it was when she'd heard about a griffin terrorizing a town nearby where they had been camped, that was almost two years ago now. She'd killed the griffin but had been spotted, she swore to herself she wouldn't be this time. She vaulted up a sturdy oak with a flash of golden eyes. She only wobbled slightly when Mona flew into her hair seemingly intent to weave as many flowers as possible into the slightly curly mop. Merlin ignored her fairy friend and kept looking down as she crouched on the branch.

She'd passed through the magical barrier a few yards back. She knew that anyone who was trying to gain access to the camp would be forced around in circles until someone from the camp let them in. Sure enough a few minutes later a small convoy of three men dressed in plain clothes rode into sight. She could see their lips moving but couldn't make out a word they were saying. A whispered word and she could hear them as clearly as if she was walking next to them.

"Pr… Arthur are you certain this is where Giaus said they would be?" The blonde haired blue eyed man with his arm in a sling shook his head at his curly haired companion.

"No Leon, I am not. I am certain of absolutely nothing on this little quest, absolutely nothing. I am going off of a hunch Giaus sent me on that he might be somewhere near here. He also refused to tell me where the information came from." Merlin frowned down at the man. Truth be told Merlin had liked Giaus when they had met and they had talked at length, including where he might be able to find them if he wanted to visit. The scruffy looking man bringing up the rear grinned slightly.

"It's Giaus, he's always right. I'm sure we'll find them soon." Arthur rubbed his bandaged shoulder, he was clearly badly injured.

"I just hope we find them in time." Merlin followed them from above, invisible, or at least nearly so due to a spell she'd learned from a dryad in Mercia. The blonde one, Arthur, was looking worse as every second ticked by. Merlin was getting worried, she hated seeing people hurt. But it wasn't just that, this forest was crawling with Serkets who were drawn to the smell of blood. Sure enough a few minutes later she heard the telltale clicking sound filling the air. The men all reached for swords but Arthur wobbled and fell off his horse. Leon and the as yet unnamed knight leapt from their horses but Merlin was already moving.

Leon pulled Arthur up by his good arm and stared around into the trees where the ominous clicking noise was coming from the trees around them. Gwaine swirled his sword around watching for any movement. There was a flash of motion out of the corner of his eye but when he looked there was nothing there. Then a growling met his ears and he frowned deeply sword still at the ready. That was a wolf growling loudly, but clearly only one wolf. Then one of the creatures that was making that ominous clicking noise skittered into view. It was large and black as pitch and straight out of a twisted nightmare. Then a large blur barreled out of the forest and attacked the giant scorpion. There was a mess of fur and insect that Gwaine couldn't make heads or tails of for a moment until a few minutes later the blur stood victorious. The blur of fur as it turned out was a wolf, about as tall as Gwaine's waist with fur the color of a raven's feathers except for her front left leg which was almost entirely grey though the color seemed to speckle and change as he watched. It was a very peculiar creature, not just because of the bright blue scarf tied around its neck or the earrings hanging from its tall pointed ears or the golden bangles that hung just above its paws, but because the eyes of this creature were a shining swirling gold. The wolf nodded at them and walked to the edge of the clearing before looking back at the two still standing men and motioning them forward with its head. It wanted them to follow it. The clicking sounds were back and Leon and Gwaine hoisted Arthur, with one arm over each of their shoulders, and having no other choice they followed the mysterious wolf deeper into the forest.


	4. 3 Meeting The Prince

**Author's Note: Hope you're all enjoying this story. Sorry the updates are taking a while. Writing is fun but unfortunately hurts like hell right now. I own nothing.**

3 Meeting The Prince

The wolf led them up to a spot in the forest and pawed at what appeared to be a barrier in the woods, it was invisible until the wolfs paws made contact with it. She howled loudly and within seconds several people in druid's robes came running into view, pausing only slightly when they spotted the men following the wolf. The wolf barked and sniffed and woofed at them seeming to speak in its own way. The tall man in the front of the group nodded and stepped forward.

"Please come with me, we can help your friend." Leon glanced at Gwaine who hesitated until the wolf pushed at his heels with its head, not nipping at him but urging him to move forward. He nodded at Leon and the two knights hefted Arthur between them and moved forward the Druids following closely behind them and the wolf leading the way.

Soon they arrived at the camp, the druids that hadn't escorted them into the camp hanging back as if scared of the unarmed men. Leon swore to himself when he realized that their horses had run off when the Serkets attacked. The wolf pranced off into one of the tents, none of the druids seemed to notice, almost as if it was an everyday thing. A woman with dark hair and eyes came up to them and motioned for them to follow her. She lead them into what was clearly a medical tent and then ushered them back outside. They tried to protest but she gave them a look that made them both quake in their boots, she clearly had children.

"I can't help him if you two are hovering over me. I assume you're here for something so go ask the elders while I help your friend." With that she shut the tent flap on them. There was a musical laugh from behind them and they both turned to see a girl, around Arthur's age maybe a few years younger, standing behind them. She was tall for her apparent age with a mess of long raven colored hair that was braided in several areas. Her eyes were the clearest deepest blue Gwaine had ever seen. She wore a red tunic and a long brown skirt and no shoes. But what grabbed Gwaine's attention was the scarf around her neck and the earrings that sparkled at her ears. They were the same ones the wolf had been wearing. Gwaine raised an eyebrow at her as Leon bowed slightly to her.

"My lady may I ask the whereabouts of one Balinor the dragon lord? We were sent here to ask for his assistance. There is a dragon attacking Camelot we need..." The girl cut him off.

"Yeah I'll take you to Balinor. Can't promise he'll help though. He's kinda stubborn that way." She motioned for them to follow her.

"Also no titles please, just Merlin." Gwaine smiled he liked her already. He hated his title and didn't really like Arthur much but he'd ended up saving Arthur's life and sharing his father's identity with him before he knew who he was. Despite Gwaine's protests Arthur's father had made him a knight when he had discovered the truth, but at least he could help people more from where he was. The girl, Merlin, led them to a large tent and stuck her head in without knocking. Gwaine watched the girl as she spoke with a tall woman in deep green robes. She had bangles on her wrists where the wolf had had them around its front paws and her left hand was covered in black tattoo ink, intricate designs disappearing under her sleeve, right where the wolf had had a different colored paw. Gwaine was interested in this girl, she had clearly been the wolf that had saved them before. The big question here was how. Magic clearly but had Leon noticed? Gwaine never really cared about magic honestly he had been raised to believe that actions spoke louder than words and had over the past year of being a knight, impressed this on the young prince of Camelot, or at least he tried to. Merlin had finished talking to the woman and apparently at Merlin's request the woman was talking to a man with dark hair and bright blue eyes, similar to Merlin's. He sighed as he walked over to them and motioned them out of the tents doorway and back towards the center of the camp. Once they'd reached the center of the camp Balinor stopped and turned to the knights, arms crossed a stony expression on his face. Merlin stood to the side almost between Balinor and the knights. Leon bowed again, this time to Balinor.

"Balinor we have come all the way from Camelot to beg your assistance. The great dragon has escaped and is destroying Camelot. You're the only one who can help. Please." Balinor's eyes narrowed and Merlin glared at him.

"I can't blame Kilgaraha for what he's doing. Uther deserves what he gets, he killed all of Kilgaraha's kin and mine as well." Merlin's eyes narrowed further as she glared at him.

"We will help your friend recover and help you on your way but I cannot help Uther destroy the last dragon. I will not." Merlin rolled her eyes at him anger still in her eyes as she turned on her heel and stalked off. Balinor called after her.

"Where do you think you're going?" Merlin shot a look over her shoulder, identical to the one the woman in the healer's tent had sent them.

"I'm going to go find their horses since you refuse to help them I will." With that she stalked off without another word, back out into the forest.

Balinor told them they could wait for Arthur in the camp as long as they were civil to the druids who, while wary of them, did what they could to help them. The woman in the green robes brought them food and a few hours later Merlin returned with their horses, she'd even found Arthur's horse somehow though it had been the first to bolt. She tied their horses to a tree nearby and set about feeding and watering them. Gwaine and Leon stood to assist her.

"Not all of us agree with Balinor you know." She said, facing Arthur's horse. The normally temperamental stallion was allowing the young druid girl to pet him which surprised Leon, but not as much as her words did.

"I mean I understand why Kilgaraha's doing it. What would you do if someone killed all of your family and then kept you imprisoned for twenty years? But just because he's angry doesn't mean he should be allowed to rampage around hurting people. That's not what magic should be for." The last sentence was whispered as if only meant to be heard by herself. The flap of the healer's tent opened and the woman from before stuck her head out of the flap.

"Merlin?" Merlin's head shot up and a small smile replaced her thoughtful expression.

"Yeah mom?" Gwaine and Leon each raised an eyebrow.

"We need your help in here please." Merlin patted Arthur's horse on the main and raced off, bare feet slapping on the dirt of the camp center.

Arthur woke slowly to a face he'd never seen before, she had hair for miles in varying states of braiding and flowers woven into it. But it was her eyes that drew his attention. They were the deepest blue he'd ever seen, seeming to gleam with flecks of gold. They were incredibly beautiful, as was the girls smile.

"Well look who's back in the land of the living. Thought we were gonna lose you there for a moment. My name is Merlin, do you remember yours?" Arthur nodded as he slowly sat up.

"My name is Arthur Pendragon." For some reason he wanted to tell this girl she had beautiful eyes but he bit his tongue and looked around.

"I need to speak with Balinor." Merlin frowned, though it didn't seem to be directed at Arthur.

"A lot of good it'll do you, but I'll go get him." Arthur watched her leave the tent and felt the overwhelming urge to follow her, for some reason he didn't want to let this girl out of his sight. He had no idea where these feelings had come from but he didn't really have time to think about it as she returned moments later followed by a tall man with dark hair and blue eyes, almost exactly like Merlin's.

"Prince Arthur, it seems we have something to speak about."


	5. 4 The Decision

**Author's Note: I haven't touched this one in a while but I got a bit of inspiration for it so I decided to go ahead with the next chapter. I own nothing.**

4 The Decision 

Balinor sent Merlin out of the tent for his discussion with the prince, she was less than pleased. She waited outside the healer's tent watching the two knights tend to their horses. Hunith exited the tent to the sounds of raised voices. Merlin rolled her eyes.

"I see that's going well." Hunith shook her head sitting down on the grass beside Merlin. She sighed.

"Your father can be very stubborn, and I know you know the circumstances he came to be so, especially against Uther." Merlin looked away from her mother. Hunith gently tilted her daughters face back towards her.

"That does not mean he is always right. Your father's prejudice against Uther may be justified but it does not mean he shouldn't help. There are very few who can help them now, only two people really." Merlin raised an eyebrow at her mother in confusion. Then her face lit with comprehension and a touch of mischief.

"You mean it?" Hunith nodded and laughed as her daughter hugged her.

"There's a pack waiting for you in the tent. Take it now before your father sees it. I'm sure you'll find a way to keep up with the knights. You have a knack for always finding what you need. Just promise me one thing, come home safe." Merlin nodded hugging her mother again.

"I will. I love you Mother." With that Merlin took off in the direction of their tent, bare feet slapping on the dirt of the camps center. The scruffy knight watched her disappear into the tent with slight interest. Merlin hadn't noticed though. She was too busy slipping out the back of their tent, pack slung over her shoulder. She disappeared easily into the trees without a sound a smile on her lips and determination in her eyes.

A loud argument later Arthur came storming out of the healer's tent pulling on his shirt angrily. Balinor did not follow him out of the tent. Arthur swore as he circled his shoulder and looked around for his knights. They were talking to the woman who had left the tent after the girl, Merlin. He didn't see her and that made him frown. Not that he was worried, she was probably a magic user who could take care of herself. But still even with that doubt at the back of his mind he couldn't help but wonder where she had gone. He shook that feeling off.

"Leon, Gwaine, we should be going." The woman turned to him and curtsied slightly.

"I thought as much. I am glad to see you are back on your feet. We have restocked your provisions and several of us will escort you to the edge of our camp." Arthur nodded.

"Thank you for your kindness. I wish I could return it but it's likely we'll never meet again. I hope for the sake of all of us I can defeat the dragon and save all the lands from his wrath." The woman nodded a smile trying to pull at the edge of her lips.

"I believe you will find a way Prince Arthur. Good luck." He nodded at her in thanks and mounted his horse. Leon and Gwaine mounted theirs and were about to ride off when Arthur seemed to think twice.

"That girl, the one in the tent, Merlin, tell her thank you for me." Hunith did smile at that.

"I am sure she will get the message." Hunith curtsied again as the knights and prince rode out into the forest. She smiled to herself as she watched the party disappear into the forest lead by several of the druids on foot. They would see the knights to the border of their camp but they would go no further than that. They looked to Balinor as a leader until Merlin could grow of age and take her place as leader of the Druids, she would be their Queen for as Emrys she was magic itself.

Arthur stared down at his reins. He couldn't help but think about how he had failed, failed his father, all of Camelot. But he couldn't help but think of what Balinor had said.

'I will not help you to murder the last dragon. Every death he is raining down on Camelot was earned by your father. He would have hunted me and my family down to the ends of the earth! Slaughtered my wife and daughter without a thought!' Arthur had never thought of it like that before. Never really given a thought to how the Purge came around. Now he was curious. Giaus had told him before he left that they had been friends once, Balinor and Uther, before the Purge. He had been too young to remember but he had heard that women and children had been killed because they were dangerous, or at least that's what he'd been told. He wasn't so sure he believed it anymore. He wasn't sure what he believed anymore. He was brought out of his musings by the sound of hoof beats to his left. They were several miles away from the camp now. They paused and Arthur turned his head to look in the direction of the noise.

A pure white mare galloped out of the forest a girl astride its back. She had hair for miles, pale porcelain skin and bright shining blue eyes. Arthur froze in shock for a moment. It took a moment to take in the traveling pack on her back.

"What are you doing?" She smiled at him and his heart did something funny and ended up sticking in his throat.

"I'm coming with you. At the very least I can help with the injured and I may be of some help against the dragon." The men stared at her. Gwaine laughed out loud, snapping Arthur out of his stupor.

"No offence but you're a bit small to be of help against a dragon." The grin on her face turned into a smirk.

"Don't always trust your eyes, they'll lie to you more often than not. Besides you'll have more wounded than Giaus can handle on his own." That caught Arthur's attention.

"You know Giaus?" She nodded.

"Yes. He's my uncle. Shall we?" With that she guided her horse to the front of their party and rode off. Arthur shook his head as he realized there was no saddle on her horse nor shoes on her feet.


	6. 5 An Old Friends Child

**Author's Note: I know I haven't touched this one in forever I got a bit stuck. Hopefully I can get this one rolling again. I've had a few ideas for it. For those of you hoping for Merwaine you'll just have to read one of my other Fem Merlin stories for that though there may be some flirting. Also none of the Morgouse story arc has happened yet. You'll find out how the dragon escaped later. I own nothing.**

5 An Old Friends Child

It took them two days to reach Camelot. Arthur would normally be quite annoyed if only because of Gwaine's constant yapping and tavern tales but Merlin seemed to make all the difference. She didn't seem to be as impressed by Gwaine's tales as the ladies at court. Instead she laughed when he spoke of near misses in battle and bar brawls. She in turn told stories that Arthur had a hard time believing were true. Gwaine for his part could tell she was leaving parts out of her stories, likely due to their magical nature. She clearly wasn't an idiot, she knew better than to bring up magic around Arthur.

Finally they arrived in Camelot. It seemed to still be mostly on fire but it looked like the dragon hadn't attacked while they were gone. They were met in the courtyard by a confused, angry looking Uther and an equally confused looking Giaus. Merlin hopped off her horse and ran forwards. Giaus returned her hug wholeheartedly but pulled back quickly.

"My girl what are you doing here?" Uther raised an eyebrow. Giaus nodded to him.

"My apologies my king. This is my niece, Merlin." Uther's eyebrow climbed higher.

"I was unaware you had a niece Giaus." Giaus smiled slightly.

"As was I until a few months ago. She's my long lost sister Hunith's child." Uther nodded.

"I see. And your mother?" Merlin curtsied slightly.

"My mother is a midwife and a skilled healer of the ill and injured. She learned from Giaus when she was younger and taught me everything she knows. I thought I could be of some help here." Uther nodded and turned to Arthur.

"And what of Balinor?" Arthur shook his head resentment and guilt in his eyes.

"He refused to come. Nothing I said made any difference." Uther motioned for Arthur to follow him inside. Merlin frowned after them but followed Giaus into the hall that had been set up as a temporary hospital.

"You shouldn't have come here Merlin, you know the dangers especially for you." Merlin nodded as she tried to pull her hair back into a braid with mixed success.

"Would you have me do nothing? People are dying. I won't stand by. He might but I won't." Giaus shook his head at her speaking about her father that way but Merlin was already rounding the corner into the hospital. She set down her pack by the door and fished around in it pulling out several small jars and rolls of bandages.

Gwen nudged Lady Morgana who was checking their rather meager supply of bandages. They both looked up at the strange girl struggling under the large pile of bandages. They rushed to help her. She smiled as they helped her with the bandages. Morgana frowned slightly, she had never seen this girl before. As if reading her mind Gwen spoke up as she arranged the bandages on the table.

"I haven't seen you around here before." The girl smiled again.

"I haven't been around before. I'm Merlin, I'm Giaus' niece. I came to help with the wounded." Merlin leaned over one of the knights on the table brushing a long strand of hair out of her face. She nodded and hurried over to her pack. She came back moments later with a fat little jar and carefully smeared it into the burn. He winced violently.

"Oh come on, I know it stings but you're a knight you should be able to handle a little sting." Sir Bedavier, who had only been a knight for about a week stared at her but said nothing. Gwen giggled trying to hide it behind her hands. Morgana smiled, she liked this girl already. Merlin was oblivious however, having already moved on to the next burn victim. The three girls worked for a few hours before a bell sounded. Merlin looked up at the celling confusion written on her features.

"What's that?" Gwen raised her eyebrows.

"You've never heard a bell before?" Merlin shook her head.

"Not one that big." She rushed to the window. Morgana's eyes widened in realization as she realized that Merlin wasn't wearing any shoes.

"You've never been to a city before, have you?" Merlin was still looking out the window, seemingly searching for the bells.

"Not one this big. Never inside a castle, that's for sure." Merlin hadn't noticed the door opening and jumped when a man cleared his throat in the doorway. She slipped and almost fell out the window. An arm caught her around the waste and pulled her back to safety, she blushed a deep crimson as she came face to face with Prince Arthur Pendragon.

Arthur really didn't want to put Merlin down again, but he did so anyway, stepping back a few steps for the sake of propriety. He still couldn't put his finger on it but something about this girl that made him never want to let go.

"Are you alright? You shouldn't lean out windows like that, you'll end up hurting yourself." It came out quite a bit harsher than he'd meant it, almost like an order. Her eyes narrowed and she frowned her pretty pink blush vanishing.

"And you shouldn't tell me what to do." Arthurs expression turned incredulous. No one had ever talked back to him like that before. Certainly no maiden, especially one he'd just saved. He was about to say as much to her, anger written on his face when a long low whistle sounded under the sounds of the bells and Merlin tilted her head her frown deepening. Morgana decided to step in.

"Are you injured Arthur because otherwise we'll need you to leave, it's crowded enough in here as it is." Arthur turned to her.

"Sorry Morgana I was coming to check on the wounded and on you and your handmaiden. And Merlin. The sentry spotted a few people heading this way, we don't know who they are yet so it's best of you ladies stay in here. No sign of the dragon yet either." Arthur missed the guilty expression that flashed across Morgana's face but Merlin didn't. She kept her silence though, she was busy listening. Arthur walked over to the side of his newest Knight, Sir Bedavier.

"How are you feeling?" He nodded to the bandage on the young man's chest.

"Much better. Merlin is quite the physician sire." Arthur glanced at where the girl had been but she was gone. He turned his head and saw the edge of a brown skirt and a tattooed foot disappearing out the door. He cursed and raced after her.

Merlin had a little trouble finding her way out of the castle. By the time she made it outside two men astride horses were coming into the courtyard followed by several knights including Leon and Gwaine who had been put on guarding duty after their return. Both men were hooded and cloaked. Arthur caught up with Merlin as she reached the partially destroyed courtyard. She had somehow found her way out one of the side exits, Uther was coming down the stairs with several knights in tow. Arthur caught Merlin's arm and she whirled on him, looking confused.

"What are you doing?" Arthur couldn't believe how naive this girl was.

"They could be dangerous." Arthur was going to continue but he was interrupted by one of the figures who was lowering his hood.

"Kindly take your hands off my daughter Prince Arthur." Arthurs eyes nearly bugged out of his head. He didn't need to look up into the figures eyes to know who it was. Balinor stared down at him disapproval in his eyes as he caught his daughters eye. She rolled hers at him and glared.

Uther was practically kicking himself for not seeing it sooner as Arthur dropped her arm in shock. She had eyes so like his and his slightly up curved nose. Now that the fact was laid out in front of him it was so clear that this girl was the daughter of his old friend. That had to be the only reason he had come. She raced over to his horse but did not come any closer than the animals head. Balinor opened his mouth to chastise his child when they both turned to look into the sky as the warning bells rang out and a roar sounded across the evening sky.


	7. 6 In A Dragon

**Author's Note: Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha I'm back! Sorry I've been gone for so long but it's necessary. Moving again and work it's crazy. The dragon tongue will be in italics. I still own nothing.**

6 In A Dragon's Talons

Merlin dove to the side as a wave of flame came down on the courtyard. Balinor's horse spooked along with that of the as yet unnamed man. Arthur, still in his full armor dove forward attempting to get to Merlin, to protect or arrest her he wasn't sure. She had lied to him hadn't she? But she was far too quick on her feet. She brought her left hand to her mouth and let out an ear piercing whistle. Dimly Arthur heard a crack in the distance and a moment later Merlin's pure white mare galloped into the courtyard. Many of the knights were taking aim with their crossbows while others struggled to get the spooked horses under control. Balinor and the druid he'd brought with him were having much more luck. Merlin leapt onto her horses back as it galloped past seemingly blind to the fire that filled the courtyard. Galloping around the panicked horses of the knights she snatched the crossbow and quiver off Gwaine's saddle. Holding one bolt between her teeth she quickly reloaded and shot at the dragon with impeccable accuracy. She didn't hurt him, as no crossbow could pierce his hide but she got his attention striking at one of his wings as none of the knights had thought to do. She loaded another bolt and shot again as Balinor realized what she was doing. Taking off at a gallop Merlin barely avoided a stream of fire, her hair smoking as she galloped down the path out of Camelot. She reloaded, needing to keep the dragon's attention for this plan to work. Little did she know she'd had his undivided attention from the moment he'd sensed her presence in Camelot. Balinor and the druid took off after Merlin and the dragon. Arthur grabbed the reins of one of the spooked horses and swung his leg over the horse ignoring his father's shouts he motioned for Leon and Gwaine to follow him and galloped off after the small crowd.

Merlin for her part was cursing her own stupidity. Aethian, her mare, knew these forests better than she did and was steering herself as she often did when they went out on their adventures but taking on a dragon solo hadn't exactly been her best idea. Maybe not her worst to date but definitely not her best. She ducked as branches rained. Kilgaraha was ripping up trees to try and get to her. Ok worst plan to date, definitely. She just hoped her father was close behind her, though she had begun training as a dragon lord, learning the language and other things she would have to know she couldn't access that power until after her father died. She hoped she wouldn't be able to access that power for a very long time. They might disagree on a regular basis but she loved her father. Finally, a clearing came into view. But just as they reached the edge of the clearing a large gust of wind blew past her, the magic carried on the gust blew her off her horse and into the clearing. Her head met a rock and she knew no more.

Balinor was panicking. Kilgaraha had ripped up the forest behind Merlin so badly there was no way to follow her directly. Even with Tauren at his side, the druid's magic was far stronger than his own, their going was much slower than he'd like. There was no telling what would happen to Merlin if the dragon got to her first. Arthur was set on finding this beast and if it had hurt Merlin even in the slightest he was going to tear it apart scale by scale. This compulsion should worry him more but for some reason it didn't. Maybe he just didn't want to question it. The path of destruction was easy enough to follow someone was clearing it out of the way in front of them.

Kilgaraha landed in front of the crumpled figure on the ground. Her horse was staying at the edge of the clearing nickering in fear, if for her rider or of the dragon Kilgaraha couldn't tell. This clearly wasn't an ordinary horse but he would expect nothing less from her. She wasn't exactly what he was expecting from the great Emrys, but he could feel the magic flowing through her very soul as it did through his. Unconscious though she was magic still flowed through her being, working to heal the gash on her forehead. He frowned, he hadn't meant for her to be hurt. Carefully he leaned down and gently touched his snout to her head drawing memories to the surface. He smiled, she was already beginning to come to terms with her destiny, to protect Arthur and Camelot though she didn't even know it. But he could sense her other half coming closer, he didn't have much time. He breathed a gold mist over her, they wouldn't have time to speak face to face but she needed to know the truth. Her eyes rolled open a tiny slit and he saw the bright blue iris change to pure swirling gold for a moment. He couldn't let the young Pendragon get his hands on her, not yet anyway. He carefully reached forward and gently, gingerly gathered her limp form into his talon. He began to take off when a loud familiar roar sounded through the clearing from behind them.

" _Stop!"_ Kilgaraha tried to fight it but the call of a dragon lord after so long in silence wishing for the barest hint of another of his kin was too much to resist. He was careful of the warlock in his claws as he landed and turned to face the dragon lord, who had so long ago been tricked into helping in his capture.

 _"_ _I could never hurt her, you know this. She is my kin as she is yours. And she is the savior of magic, I could no sooner harm her than I could harm myself."_ To prove he meant his words he carefully laid her down on the ground in front of her father. Though she was still out cold the wound on her head was healing into a thin scar just at her hairline.

"I know. But I will not let you take her away from me." Kilgaraha bowed his head in acknowledgement.

"I understand you are protective of your kin, I was once myself. But I failed, destiny ripped them away from me as it will take her from you and sooner than you can imagine. Do not let it be in the same way they were taken from me." Balinor nodded as Tauren knelt next to Merlin and placed a hand over the nearly healed gash to speed the healing process with his own magic.

"What will you do now Balinor? Will you end the life of the last dragon? Or will you simply leave me behind like you did so long ago?" Balinor tensed.

"I did not know of Uther's plan! How was I to know the man I once called my friend had turned to madness! He hunted me and my wife across three kingdoms! I had no chance to come help you, I thought you dead for years! I will not see the last of my kin dead!" A groan near his feet drew his attention to his daughter. She was sitting up, rubbing her head.

"Merlin are you alright?" She nodded looking up at the dragon in awe and understanding written on her face.

"I'm fine father." Kilgaraha smiled a toothy smile down at her.

"It is good to meet you, young warlock. I look forward to our next meeting." Merlin's grin could have lit up the whole citadel of Camelot.

"I do too." Kilgaraha looked up and spoke in a much quieter voice.

"The young prince approaches, a decision must be made." Merlin looked up at her father as she struggled to her feet.

"We can't let them capture him again and we can't hurt him, please he's the last of his kind. You know what it is to feel that." Balinor looked at his daughter and nodded. He knew very well what it was to be the last of his kind and to have his hope for the future relit by his daughter.

"We'll need a convincing illusion, think you can handle it?" Merlin grinned and hugged her father.

"Oh I think so."


	8. 7 Return To Camelot

**Author's Note: Yeah I know I keep leaving off. It's fun to leave you in suspense. This story might be coming to a close soon but I've got a sequel brewing in my head so keep an eye out. I own nothing.**

7 Return To Camelot

Arthur, Gwaine and Leon entered the clearing to a loud roar of pain and the dragon taking off into the distance, blood raining down from its side. It seemed to be flying awkwardly as if in pain. It let out another roar of pain and went up in flames before crashing to the ground as rain began to fall. It was clearly defeated. Gwaine and Leon cheered. Arthur was a bit distracted by Merlin who had blood in her hair and a crossbow in her hands.

"You did that?" Merlin shrugged and set down the empty crossbow.

"No…? My father did." Balinor almost rolled his eyes. From a young age they had taught Merlin to be careful with her powers but teaching his daughter to lie was a fool's errand. She was horrible at it. But apparently Uther's son was a fool for he turned to Balinor and stuck out his hand to shake.

"I know that we got off on the wrong foot but thank you. You've saved the people of Camelot. I owe you a debt that can never be repaid." Only Gwaine noticed Merlin's shifty look as she fiddled with a loose thread on her skirt. He narrowed his eyes and she shifted slightly. He smiled at her and shook his head. The dragon was gone. He didn't care who'd done the deed as long as it wouldn't set fire to the place he'd come to call home anymore. Merlin glanced at him and he smiled wider. She looked reassured. Arthur was still talking to Balinor. Merlin only caught the last few words.

"Rewarded by my father." That made Merlin roll her eyes, she was expecting Balinor to go off into a rant about how horrible of a person Uther was and how he would never return to Camelot. She'd heard this all before it was part of the reason she often had to sneak out of the camp. Balinor refused to help Camelot. She didn't really care what they had done in the past, or who their parents were, if they needed help she was going to help them. Balinor looked over at her then back to Arthur.

"Very well I will speak to your father. Perhaps my daughter is right, maybe people deserve a second chance." Merlin smiled wide and it took Arthur a minute to gather his thoughts away from her.

"Wise words indeed." He bowed to Merlin.

"You were brave, doing what you did. Idiotic but brave. You knew he would follow you, didn't you?" Merlin raised an eyebrow.

"Who my father or the dragon? I was pretty sure my father would follow us once he figured out I was gone but I wasn't sure that the dragon would follow me." Merlin shrugged trying to look nonchalant. She laughed as her pure white mare trotted forward and sniffed at her hair before she licked at Merlin's head trying to clean off the blood. Gwaine broke into loud laughter as Arthur stared at the girl, incredulous. Merlin managed to shoo off her horse which found a dry patch of grass and began nonchalantly grazing. Merlin looked back up at them a smile plastered on her face.

"Besides, I wasn't going to stand by and do nothing. Not when there was a chance I could help even in a small way." Arthur felt his heart do that funny thing again. This girl was like nothing he'd ever met before. They got back on their horses and made their way back to Camelot. There was raucous applause on their arrival. Apparently, the dragon had been just high enough for all of Camelot to see its demise. Uther looked almost happy to see Arthur. His smile very nearly reached his eyes.

"The great dragon is slain! Who do we have to thank for this great feat?" Arthur dismounted his horse and went to Merlin's to help her down. Balinor watched them carefully as he dismounted as well. Gwaine held in a laugh, Arthur was clearly falling for this girl. Arthur helped a slightly confused Merlin down then stepped in front of his father.

"Balinor. He defeated the dragon. He saved Camelot." Uther's eyes widened in shock. Merlin was standing next to her horse, Balinor slightly in front of her. There was a tense moment of silence. Then Uther nodded.

"Very well. We should talk Balinor." Balinor nodded and stepped forward Tauren at his side. Merlin nodded as well looking slightly relieved.

"I'm going to help Giaus with the wounded." Balinor nodded and Merlin disappeared into the castle. Gwaine followed her after a nod from Arthur. When he arrived at the makeshift hospital he found it bustling with activity. Gwen and Morgana were running around for Gwaine who was working on Sir Ector, who'd been seriously injured by the flames from the dragon a few days ago, and Merlin who was setting the broken bone of a small boy who was holding his mother's hand on the other side. She finished quickly and praised the little boy for being so brave, he hadn't even cried. The sight made Gwaine smile a little. He was soon shanghaied into helping them with the injured. It was several hours before they heard anything.

Arthur made his way into the makeshift hospital to find Gwaine talking Sir Ewian's ear off as Merlin expertly popped his misplaced shoulder back into its original position. He gasped in surprise but seemed to not have really noticed it too much, she smiled at Gwaine laughing at the expression on the knight's face. Arthur felt a twinge of jealousy. Them Merlin spotted him and her expression grew warry. Arthur didn't like that expression, he wanted her laughter back. He stepped back and Morgana stepped in front of Merlin her look challenging.

"So how did negotiations go?" Arthur smiled slightly.

"Very well actually. Father has granted clemency to Balinor, Merlin, her mother and the druid Tauren and his camp, for their aid in saving Camelot. There is to be a celebration, three days from now. To celebrate the defeat of the great dragon and honor the lives lost in the battle. You and your father are to be the guests of honor Merlin." Merlin looked genuinely confused at that.

"Seriously?" Morgana breathed a sigh of relief.

"That is fantastic news." Merlin didn't look convinced. In fact, she looked a little terrified. Morgana reached out a hand to her shoulder.

"Are you alright Merlin?" Merlin looked like a lost puppy as she looked at Morgana.

"I've never been to a royal celebration before. Much less honored at one. I don't even have shoes!" There was a chuckle from the doorway.

"That is entirely by choice Merlin and you know it." Merlin laughed slightly and ran into her father's arms. He returned her hug as Morgana smiled at them.

"If you're worried about having anything to wear you look about my size, Gwen and I will take care of you." Gwen smiled at her friend and Merlin who had rapidly become friends to both her and Morgana. It was impossible to dislike this girl. Giaus cleared his throat.

"Merlin I could use your assistance." Merlin flashed her father and Arthur a smile that lit up the room before rushing back over to Giaus.


	9. 8 Training

**Author's Note: So we're gonna have some bonding with the ladies while Arthur watches in this one. I own nothing.**

8 Training

By the next day all the serious injuries had been taken care of and Giaus shooed Merlin out of the hospital. Morgana found her in the stables brushing her horse and talking to it.

"I just don't know my friend, it's a bit odd here. Isn't it?" The horse seemed to nod. Merlin smiled.

"I knew you'd agree with me. Well you shouldn't have to be cooped up in a stable much longer." The horse neighed and gently pulled a flower from Merlin's hair. The young girl laughed. Morgana couldn't stifle her own laugh. Merlin whirled. Morgana laughed.

"Sorry didn't mean to startle you." Merlin smiled wide.

"It's fine my lady. I just wasn't expecting anyone else to be here." Morgana smiled again.

"Morgana please, just Morgana. I was actually looking for you. I wanted to see if you wanted to train with me?" Merlin raised an eyebrow at her.

"Training? What do you mean?" Morgana grinned.

"Can you keep a secret Merlin?" Merlin suppressed a smile.

"Very well actually." Morgana's smile widened.

"Good, then come with me." Morgana took Merlin's hand and led her away back into the castle and to a small door. She placed a finger to her lips and knocked three times in rhythm. The door was cracked open and then opened all the way. Sir Gwaine grinned at them and beckoned them inside. He closed the door behind them and led them down a dark corridor to a small well-lit area that seemed to serve as an arena of sorts. There were weapons lining the walls and even a small whetstone sat at the edge of the arena. Merlin raised an eyebrow.

"What is this?" Gwen looked up from where she was sharpening a sword and smiled.

"It's our training arena." Merlin raised an eyebrow.

"Why is it hidden?" Morgana stretched and picked up her sword.

"When I was younger Uther would let me train with the boys, playfighting he called it. But once I turned eleven he wouldn't let me anymore." Merlin made a face.

"Well that's just silly. How are you supposed to be able to defend yourself if you don't train?" Morgana nodded a smile on her face.

"Exactly what I thought. I've been training in secret since then. Gwen helps me, her father was a blacksmith. A fantastic blacksmith." Merlin's eyebrows drew together.

"Was he always a blacksmith?" This question was directed at Gwen who nodded a bit sadly.

"He was. He died, about six months ago. There was a plague that came through Camelot, spread by water. They couldn't find a cure in time to save him." Merlin hugged the serving girl tight. The plague was one she was familiar with, it was one of the visions the dragon had shared with her. A storm she'd accidently created had flushed the Avank out of the water and struck it with wind and lightning at the same time Arthur had been fighting it. She was sorry she hadn't been in time to save Gwen's father, especially since she had a feeling she knew someone special to her.

"Do you have a brother Gwen?" Gwen brushed her eyes and nodded.

"Yeah. He left Camelot years ago though. His name is…" Merlin finished her sentence for her.

"Elyan." Gwen's eyes went wide.

"Yes." Merlin grinned.

"I know him. He's a wonderful person. Working as a blacksmith in a small town in Mercia last I heard." That was true. But it wasn't the full truth. He was working at that blacksmiths shop temporarily, ready to move when the druids did, along with a few other friends of Merlin's who were always nearby when she needed them. They would likely have heard by now that she wasn't at camp anymore. She was expecting them to show up in Camelot any day. Gwen hugged her tight. She felt tears wet her shoulder.

"Thank you so much. It is so good to know he's alright." Merlin grinned and hugged her back.

"He's fantastic. With a close group of friends who'd do anything to help him and he'd do anything to help them." Gwen squeezed her one last time before stepping back and wiping her eyes again. Morgana grinned at them and Gwaine barked a laugh from the corner he had settled in. Morgana took a few whacks at the practice dummy. Merlin grinned over at Gwaine.

"So what are you doing here sir knight? Shouldn't you be, you know trying to stop this kind of thing? Isn't that what knights do?" Gwaine leaned forward.

"What do you think of knights Merlin? Be honest, I won't judge." Merlin sighed.

"Honestly? I grew up hearing horror stories about the knights of Camelot. That they would stop at nothing to hunt anything even semi related to magic to death. As someone who grew up around the druids that was pretty scary. I've met knights from other kingdoms before. I can't think of one who was a genuinely decent person. And then I met you and Leon. I don't know why but you lot are alright. Even Arthur's ok when he's not being condescending or barking orders." Gwaine smiled.

"Good to know I'm one of the good ones." Arthur smiled slightly at Gwaine's words from his hiding place in the dark corridor nearby. He'd been on patrol when he'd seen Gwaine and Gwen slipping off followed not too far behind by Morgana and a confused Merlin. It was good to know that Merlin thought at least well of them but her words bothered him. Horror stories about his knights? He couldn't get past that. Camelot was supposed to be a beacon of hope for everyone but it clearly wasn't. People who had magic, like Tauren who'd left Camelot as fast as his horse could take him as soon as he could, were terrified of this place. People who were simply related to those with magic without any themselves, like Merlin, at least according to her father, would live in fear of the knights. That wasn't right. But honestly he couldn't get Merlin off his mind since he met her. He sat back as the girls began to train. He couldn't help but think about something that had happened years ago.

He and Leon and a few of the other knights had been doing rounds in one of the outlying villages. An old woman had fallen in the path of their horses and Arthur had helped her up. She'd grabbed hold of his wrist and whispered in his ear.

'You'll never find her where you expect to find her. She will show you a world beyond the one you've seen. Listen and look and you will be the greatest king of them all. Ignore her, let her slip through your fingers, and you will bring about your own destruction.' Arthur had been too stunned to realize that the woman had let go of him and walked away when Leon had called out to him.

'Are you alright Sire?' He had nodded, looking around for the woman but they hadn't seen her again. He'd only ever told Leon and Gwaine about what the old woman had said. Leon hadn't had much to say but he'd looked thoughtful. Gwiane, who'd been told years after the event itself, had shrugged and suggested that the old woman had been a seer giving Arthur some advice for his future. Arthur's first instinct had been to shut down the suggestion but ever since he'd woken up in the healer's tent in the druids camp to those eyes he hadn't been able to get the old woman's words out of his head. He watched as Morgana and Merlin sparred, Merlin teaching her a few new moves she said she'd learned all over the five kingdoms. She was fantastic with a spear and decent with a sword. Her mace work needed work though. They went at it for another hour or so before Arthur decided it was best to head back up to the castle to report back in. He'd figure out an excuse for Gwaine on the way in. Several hours later he smiled as Morgana Merlin and Gwen came back into the castle and went straight up to Morgana's chambers claiming they needed to try on dresses for the ball. Balinor shook his head as his daughter ran up the stairs after Lady Morgana and her servant her bare feet slapping on the tiles of the hall.


	10. 9 Truth and Lies

**Author's Note: The tattoos are a thing here too but they are much more intricate because she got them younger and they grow as she and her powers do. I own nothing.**

9 Truths and Lies

Gwen continued to measure Merlin as all three girls laughed.

"You're not serious?" Morgana nodded and stifled another laugh.

"But I am. His face was as red as the flag of Camelot." Morgana snorted a laugh.

"I'd like to meet this Lancelot, he sounds like an interesting bloke." Merlin nodded at Gwen.

"You might have already met him. He came here a few years ago to become a knight but he was turned away because he isn't of noble birth." Morgana thought for a moment.

"You know I think I remember him. Tall, tan skin, dark hair, dreamy eyes." Merlin nodded as Gwen giggled.

"Sounds like him but that could describe any number of people." Gwen giggled again and almost dropped her tape measure. She took a deep breath and stood.

"I'd better get these to the seamstress. What color would you prefer your dress Merlin?" Merlin shrugged.

"I honestly don't really care. No offence but it's just not what I'm used to. I prefer running around in the woods to fancy parties." Morgana giggled at the look on Merlin's face. The Lady turned to Gwen.

"I think blue Gwen." Gwen nodded, curtsied, and left. Merlin turned to Morgana. She had a question for the lady but she had no idea how to phrase it without sounding like she was accusing her of something. Merlin had noticed that every time the dragon escaping was brought up around her she would flinch slightly or start guiltily. Anyone else might have brushed it off as nerves but Merlin had a knack for knowing when people were hiding things. If Morgana wasn't hiding something she'd never seen someone lie before. Merlin even had an idea of what it was. If she had to guess she'd say that Morgana had released the dragon not knowing what he would do once free. But before she could speak Morgana smiled and gestured to the tattoos that ran the length of both of Merlin's arms.

"So, I'm curious about those tattoos. I've never seen tattoos like that." Merlin smiled down at her bare arms. It wasn't often that she got to show off her tattoos to anyone outside the druids. They were very special markings that she'd originally received from the Triple Goddess on her tenth birthday. She was nearly twenty now and the tattoos had grown and changed with her powers evolving over the years into the intricate masterpiece that now painted her skin. They had begun with a simple triskelion on her left shoulder with a bright blue gem in the center that matched her eyes, flashing gold whenever her eyes did. They'd spread from there. Every time something extraordinary happened to her a new tattoo grew into place. She was glad she'd been wearing a long-sleeved tunic for the past few days for the tattoo that now covered her right arm down to her wrist was new even to her, she guessed it had happened when she and the dragon made contact for the first time for one of the swirling figures was a dragon, though this one was done in a shimmering black ink. She was excited about that one, for if it was like the wolf that nestled on her left forearm she might be able to transform into the black dragon but she couldn't exactly tell Morgana that.

"They're sort of my hobby. I travel quite a bit. Whenever something big happens to me I get a new one. The druids are amazing artists." That at the very least was true. Morgana pointed to the dragon that now curled around her right arm mixed in with the other swirling designs.

"Why'd you get that one?" Merlin shrugged.

"My father's a dragon lord. I may be one someday. My heritage is important to me, just because my father and I don't get along all that well doesn't mean I'm not proud of who I am." Morgana sighed and nodded looking down at her hands. Merlin leaned forwards.

"You seem upset. You can talk to me about anything you want to. I've been told I'm a fantastic listener." Merlin smiled. Morgana nodded. She really did want to talk to someone about what she'd done. She hadn't known what he would do, she hadn't known that he would go on a rampage and now the last dragon was dead because of her, because she'd set him loose. She just couldn't stand knowing she was living above the prison of such a beautiful creature. She hesitated but decided that maybe she shouldn't tell anyone what she'd done. She forced a smile and shook her head.

"I'm alright, these past few days have just been overtaxing on everyone." Merlin nodded. She could tell this wasn't the entire truth but she let it go. Instead they turned back to the subject of her tattoos.

"So what about that arm of tattoos?" Merlin grinned down at her left arm.

"Well they all have different stories but some of the patterns are hard to spot." She pointed out the wolf curled up on her forearm. A seal sat sunbathing on a rock on her bicep. A falcon swooped down to her wrist. A wave swirled between these animals shifting and changing as it made its way down her arm ending in an iridescent blue butterfly. Morgana was astounded.

"That is beautiful, I've never seen anything like that." Merlin loved that butterfly. It had been one of the first creation of life spells she'd learned. It had been the first additional tattoo that had appeared and it had stayed brilliant and bright over the years.

"Me too, it's definitely my favorite." Merlin said tracing the wings of the butterfly. She smiled as Morgana turned the subject to her hair and what they were going to do with it. It took quite a bit of time for the two of them to untangle Merlin's hair and get all the flowers and leaves out of it. Once it was all untangled it reached just past the middle of her back. Morgana whistled.

"You have the most amazing hair I've ever seen." Merlin blushed and smiled.

"I never really mess with my hair. It's just not all that important out in the woods you know." Morgana smiled.

"I guess it wouldn't be all that important to a forest girl like you, would it." Morgana said a grin on her face as she ran the brush through Merlin's hair again. Merlin chuckled.

"Forest girl huh? I like it."


	11. 10 The Note

**Author's Note: I haven't touched this one in a while but I had a spark of inspiration. I own nothing.**

10\. The Note

Merlin went back to help Giaus that afternoon despite the physician's protests. They both knew he hadn't gotten nearly as much sleep as he should have throughout this whole ordeal. Merlin reapplied the ointment on Sir Bedavier's burns and he smiled at her.

"You have stunning eyes. Has anyone ever told you that Merlin?" Merlin laughed and began to rewrap his arm.

"As a matter of fact, no." Bedavier shook his head.

"That should be a crime. You are a stunning young woman." Someone cleared their throat sharply from the doorway. Merlin glanced up and saw Arthur standing there glaring at Bedavier like he'd been personally insulted.

"Prince Arthur!" Bedavier made to rise but Merlin put a hand on his unburned shoulder.

"Don't stand up, you'll put too much pressure on the burns on your legs, they'll crack and you'll have to spend two very painful weeks recovering from what could heal in a week." Bedavier nodded and Arthur stifled a laugh. Merlin raised an eyebrow at him.

"You really are related to Giaus. You sound just like him." Merlin smiled wryly.

"My mother tells me I remind her of him." Merlin checked the small tub of salve and frowned. It was nearly empty. She quickstepped over to Giaus and had a short but heated discussion. Arthur only caught the last few words as he sidled closer to them.

"You don't have the right herbs. Without this it'll take much longer for the burns to heal and it'll be much more painful. And those with more severe burns may not survive without it. I know what I'm looking for." Giaus nodded.

"As well you may my dear but the herbs you need for that poultice, they don't grow in the kingdom of Camelot." Merlin shook her head.

"Yes, they do, they grow in what you call the Darkling Woods. I understand that you can't go there but I can." Arthur cleared his throat again.

"The Darkling woods are far too dangerous for a young woman to travel through on her own." Merlin whirled on him her eyes going icy.

"You don't tell me what is and is not too dangerous, you have no idea what I've faced in my life. I will not sit behind stone walls and wait for someone else to fix a problem I know I can handle." Merlin stormed off leaving Arthur and the others in the room a bit stunned. Bedavier spoke first.

"I didn't know anyone would dare talk to you like that your highness." Arthur was still staring after Merlin though she was no longer in sight. Bedavier looked over at Giaus who glanced in the direction that Arthur was staring and smiled slightly. He stepped around the prince and pushed Bedavier back into the bed he was sitting up in.

"Rest you can gossip with the prince about my niece later." Bedavier blushed a deep red and Arthur glared at him. Comprehension lit Bedavier's face and he turned gingerly away from Arthur, he had a juicy piece of gossip for Gwaine next time the knight came to visit though.

Merlin stormed off to Giaus' chambers and up into the small room she'd slept in the night before. Say what you would about the size of the room the view was something Merlin couldn't get from the tallest of trees. She went to pull the window open in anger but she heard a tapping on the window. She pulled it open far more gently then she'd had planned. She smiled wide as a snow white owl swooped around the room once before settling on one of the short bed posts.

"Archimedes! It's so good to see you! Do you have something for me?" The owl stuck out his leg in answer. There was a small scroll attached there with a small piece of twine. Merlin untied the twine and pulled the scroll off the owl's leg. He ruffled his feathers and spun his head around to check that they were alone. Then he spoke.

"You gonna write them a note back or what?" Merlin laughed slightly.

"Give me a second to actually read the note!" Merlin finished unrolling the note and beginning to read. As she read her face broke into a large near face splitting grin. She raced out of the room and grabbed a small piece of charcoal off of what served for the desk where Giaus wrote down all his recipes for his poultices and cures. She scribbled onto the same note and raced back to the tiny room that for the moment served as hers.

"Give this to Lancelot. He'll know what to do." The owl fluffed up slightly and huffed.

"Em…." Merlin put a finger to his beak not caring if he bit it.

"Not here, you know that, never outside of camp." The owl sighed loudly.

"Meerrlin then. I am not a messenger bird and you know that." Merlin nodded and ran a hand gently through his feathers.

"I do know that, but she sent you to me to help me and currently this is how you can help. Thank you, Archimedes." Merlin pet the owl once more as he sighed then took to the wing and soared off across the night sky. Merlin snagged the cloak out of her pack that sat on the floor and swirled it around her shoulders before taking off at a run out of the castle.

Arthur was in his room nursing another goblet of wine when he spotted a figure on a very familiar pure white horse with no saddle or other tac. Arthur swore and dropped his goblet diving for his sword and rolling across the bed before bursting out of his room and racing off towards the stables. He didn't think that his father might be awake, or that someone might see him leaving, he simply acted. Racing off after the daughter of the only living dragon lord in the onset of evening was probably not the best idea but he didn't think about that. He thought about the serkets and other nasty creatures that lived in the Darkling Woods, and what they could do to a woman on her own. He wasn't sure he could live in a world that didn't include those sparkling sapphire eyes. He faltered at that thought but kept going. He had fallen and fallen hard, maybe it was because Merlin was the only person he'd met besides Morgana who challenged him. He didn't feel like a prince when she spoke to him, he felt like a person. He felt for the first time that he was just Arthur and he didn't want to lose that feeling, he didn't want to lose her. He leapt onto a saddleless horse and took off after Merlin praying he could catch up to her.


	12. 11 The Wolves

**Author's Note: Yep we are getting some new characters in this chapter. I'm sorry I haven't updated this sooner, I had been planning to but I had to deal with a death in the family this week and my schedule took a serious hit with everything happening at once. I own nothing.**

11\. The Wolves

Merlin dismounted her horse at the crossroads several miles outside of Camelot and patted her on her muzzle. She whinnied and began to nose at the grass at the base of the tree. Merlin leaned against the tree and looked up at the sky, just visible between the trees. It was nearing midnight. She smiled as a bright red apple caught her eye in the tree above her. Merlin vaulted up the tree and picked two of the apples that grew there. Glancing around Merlin smiled as she made sure she was alone. She waved a hand and watched as the apples regrew in slow motion. She smiled. A voice echoed from the other side of the tree.

"You wanna be careful. Someone might spot you, you daft warlock." Merlin jumped slightly then grinned. She vaulted down from the tree racing around it into the arms of one of her oldest friends. Will grinned at Merlin as he hugged her back. She pulled back and he lightly punched her in the shoulder.

"And you couldn't tell us you were leaving the camp?" Merlin chuckled and rubbed her shoulder.

"I mean it was a very last minute trip." Will rolled his eyes and Merlin grinned.

"The others around here somewhere?" Will nodded and cupped his hands around his mouth letting out a loud howl. Merlin grinned as the howl echoed around the woods and was answered by three other howls. Merlin joined in with a howl of her own. It didn't take the others long to arrive at the tree. Merlin grinned and fed one of the apples she'd picked to her horse and took a bite of her apple as the others began arriving. Wills horse was grazing nearby Merlin's, the brown stallion looking rather plain next to the white mare. Three other men soon arrived each on horses of their own. Each was in a dark cloak and pulled them down as they arrived at the tree.

"I see you've gotten yourself into trouble again Merlin." Lancelot said waving the small scroll that Merlin had earlier that night tied to Archimedes leg. Merlin grinned.

"Have you ever known me to not get in trouble Lance?" Lancelot shook his head as did the others. Percival chuckled and Elyan snorted slightly.

"I'm pretty sure her name just means trouble at this point Lance." Elyan said and Merlin grinned wide at him.

"Oh, but my trouble now very closely includes you Elyan. See I met a lovely girl by the name of Gwen who was the daughter of the local Camelot blacksmith. You never told us about a sister you prat!" Elyan glared down at his shoe for a moment.

"How is she?" Merlin's grin fell slightly.

"Lonely, your father passed a while ago. I'm sorry Elyan." Elyan swiped at his eyes with his sleeve for a moment. Then he nodded.

"But she's doing well?" Merlin nodded and laid a hand on Elyan's.

"She is. And you'll get to see her soon. After we get what we need out of the Darkling woods." The four men nodded and mounted up Will offering a hand to Merlin who, as usual, raised a condescending eyebrow at it. He laughed and mounted his horse. The small party began to make their way towards the Darkling Woods.

Arthur was an excellent hunter, anyone could tell you that. There wasn't a single beast or person in Albion he couldn't track. So why was Merlin giving him such trouble? It wasn't as if it was a particularly dark night either. The moon overhead was nearly full, the sky was full of stars. It couldn't get much brighter. But for some reason Merlin seemed to have an aversion to following a set path. She had followed it out of Camelot but then without warning turned left into the woods and that did make it a touch difficult finding her trail again. He did manage it, eventually and when he did he was thoroughly confused. She had stopped at a crossroads and several other sets of footprints had joined her there. They had all made for the Darkling Woods. But who could she have met up with.

Will snickered as Merlin talked. It had apparently been a much more interesting two days than she'd made it sound in her very short nearly detail-less note to Lancelot. She'd met, fought and helped a dragon, the ones that Will had always been told didn't exist anymore. She and her father were apparently to be guests of honor at a banquet tomorrow night. Will didn't really like that, the whole idea of Uther Pendragon and his son set his teeth on edge. Percival seemed to be on his side.

"I don't trust them." Merlin rolled her eyes. Percival was not exactly renowned for his trust of nobles since Cenred's men had burned down his entire town leaving him the sole survivor. A band of bandits had picked him up and tried to sell him into slavery but the Druids had been camped nearby, and even back then couldn't seem to keep a leash on Merlin. She and Will had broken in and set all the would be slaves free. Percival had followed them back to camp and stuck with them ever since. He respected Merlin and that she, with all the power at her fingertips, chose to be a good person, even if it did get them into trouble more often than not. Lancelot shook his head.

Lancelot was the type of person who believed that actions, not heritage made you who you are. It was the reason Merlin chose him for a second in command of their little group instead of Will whom she'd known longer or Percival who was stronger, or Elyan who was a bit easier to talk to. Lancelot could be a bit intimidating, though that might have something to do with the scar that ran through his cheek. Or maybe the tattoo wrapped around his sword arm. A wolf howling at the sky. It was very similar to a wolf that lay curled up on Merlin's arm. All of them had the wolves tattooed somewhere on them though if you looked hard enough you could see differences subtle though they were between each of them. Will's was wrapped around his left arm the muzzle pointing towards his hand. Percival's sat at his shoulder sitting like a tamed puppy. That still made Merlin smile. The wolves did tend to reflect their personalities. Elyan turned in his saddle.

"So what are we looking for?" Merlin described the plants they were looking for then Merlin raised a hand to hush the others. They instantly went still. Merlin motioned into the shadows, something was following them.


	13. Attacked

**Author's Note: I haven't touched this one in a very long time but I've started watching** **Reign which is actually kind of interesting and got me thinking. So I am continuing on with this story. I own nothing.**

12\. Attacked

Arthur crept along the path he'd found. It was nearly invisible even in the light of the moon. But he'd found it. Merlin had joined up with someone else, several someone else's at the edge of the Darkling Woods. He counted five horses in total, one of them Merlin's, the others he didn't know. He swore as he lost the trail again and dismounted his horse, tracking at night was far too much of a hassle and normally he wouldn't bother but he had to make sure Merlin was alright. Then he realized he might have made a mistake as an arrow buried itself in the tree in front of him, missing by mere inches. He felt the cold of a blade at his back as he raised his hands in surrender the moonlight striking him in the face. A familiar voice sounded over the deathly stillness.

"Lance put away your sword. Will put down the arrow before I make you. He's not a threat." The cold of the blade was gone in an instant. The slight sound of a bowstring being slackened sounded and a figure stepped out of the darkness into the patch of moonlight. It was Merlin, her hair seeming to glitter in the darkness a small bag in her hand. She tilted her head at him and smiled slightly.

"Arthur, what are you doing here?" Arthur frowned.

"I could ask you the same." Merlin's smile widened.

"Well I don't belong to you or yours so you can ask me that question but I am under no obligation to answer that. But to be honest I am here gathering herbs that don't grow anywhere else in Camelot. Now what are you doing here?" Arthur frowned but eyeing the bag in her hand he spotted a few leaves sticking out of the top. He also spotted a few men around the clearing. One of them was big, bigger than any he'd seen but not quite giant, he had no sleeves on his chainmail, which was well made. Another was standing next to Merlin. He was in a green cloak his bow unstrung but he looked on edge. The man who had been behind him stepped into the light. He was dark skinned with even darker hair his smile was kind, a trust in Merlin's words evident by the fact that his sword was back in its sheath his hands away from the hilt. Another man, this one with even darker skin who looked almost familiar stepped out of the shadows, accounting for all five of the hoofprints he'd seen.

"I was making sure you were alright. It's not safe to leave the castle unescorted, especially for a woman and so late at night." The men, who had still not been identified laughed. Merlin was grinning too.

"I have wandered farther a field than you ever will. And I am free to do so, as I am not your subject, nor a member of your court." Arthur wanted to protest but he couldn't she made an excellent point. But he couldn't keep his mouth shut anyway.

"But it's still not safe. And who are these men?" Merlin nodded at Arthur.

"These are my friends. Lancelot, Will, Percival, and Elyan, this is Arthur, I'm sorry Prince Arthur of Camelot. Prince Arthur these are my friends, the wolves, well that's what the druids call them." Arthur raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" Merlin smiled, she couldn't tell him that it was because they were gifted with the power to turn to wolves to help defend her. They had all been asked if they would bear the mark and the power to do this and all had agreed.

"Because they are my friends and they and I are fierce as wolves when threatened, so it's a good thing you aren't a threat." Arthur frowned and opened his mouth to speak but Will raised a hand. A soft clicking noise was sounding through the air. The men around them drew swords, Will quickly restrung his bow. Merlin pulled a knife from somewhere in her skirts as the noise grew louder.

"What's going…?" But Arthur never got to finish his question. Instead Merlin took a flying leap off the tree root she'd been standing on and pushed him to the ground just in time for them both to narrowly miss the sting of a Serket. Merlin rolled underneath the beast and stabbed upward it shuddered and fell with a shriek. Arthur ignored the others and pushed the large insect off Merlin and pulled her to her feet as the men circled them. Merlin threw her knife over Arthur's shoulder, another Serket shrieked. Lancelot drew closer to them parrying a stinger with an expert blow.

"We need fire!" Merlin nodded, she was digging through her bag.

"Working on it!" She pulled a pair of stones out of her bag and flicked them across Lancelot's blade which burst into flames. She repeated the effect on the other knight's blades then stuck close to Will lighting arrow after arrow for him. The creatures were nearly relentless. But eventually the fire and clash of silver drove off the creatures. Only then did they breathe a sigh of relief and get back on their horses.

"We have what we need Merlin. Let's get out of here before others smell the blood and come to eat what remains." Lancelot said as Merlin picked her way over to one of the still intact stingers.

"Serket venom is useful for more than killing, you know that. We don't get chances like this very often." She pulled a small bottle out of her bag along with a pair of sturdy gloves. Carefully she collected the venom that still dripped from the sting in the bottle careful not to let even a drop of it on the outside of the bottle. The clicking returned and Merlin quickly corked the bottle and vaulted onto her horse. They set off at as fast a pace they could set, back to Camelot.


End file.
